Twitterpated
by Atrophy-Conception
Summary: Grim finds the perfect woman while on vacation with Billy and Mandy. Convinced that it’s only the woman’s claim on him that makes her jealous, Mandy tries to keep him for herself. GrimXMandy
1. The Beginning of Spring

**Author's Note:** I both hate and love stories like this…truly…this could be very ugly if I'm not careful. Of course, as a writer, that makes me all the more eager to prove that I can go about this without getting carried away, or disappointing anyone. I generally make a lot of sacrifices based on reviews and my own judgment. I know when one of my stories have gotten lost…and so far, I like to think I haven't failed too badly at fixing ideas before they make it to the page. That is, of course if it doesn't disrupt too much of my original idea.

I'm concerned about this story. The setting, for starters, worries me. I don't know why…it just reminds me of so many bad fics I've read throughout the time I've been familiar with this website. (And this is a LONG time…so I've read a lot of bad fics) Next, as it often does, I'm nervous because I'm trying to create a plot that wraps, quite disbelievingly around a couple where neither person is likely to ever be involved with the other. This takes work and time…so I ask you to be patient. This will take place after my other fic…so the feelings between Grim and Mandy will be there already…which is good for me because it means less thought is involved…and less angst (God how I hate angst…but it's impossible to avoid in these stories) and is good for you because I wont have to spend lots of time between updates trying to figure out what direction the story should go in.

Also…this story involves original characters…and…and this is probably the worst part…another woman. I loathe that when it comes to my favorite couples. Especially when it's an original character. I would just like to say; right off that this is a GrimXMandy story. There may be romance between Grim and someone else but that doesn't change the fact that it's a GrimXMandy story. Oh yes, and it's perfectly all right if you hate any of my original characters. But I hope the reason isn't because they're in any way Mary Sueish, boring, or badly created. Please tell me if they are. I try to make my characters as human as possible, and would, in fact, like you to hate them because that was the intention all along.

Now, I'm sorry for this horribly long author's note. Enjoy the story.

**Twitterpated **

Chapter One:

The Beginning Of Spring

_She set a glass down on the windowpane and gazed outside into the bright sunshine. She looked to be in a foul mood, contrasting entirely with the gentle sunlight that touched her pale skin and lit her eyes. Her scowl, which apparently was catching, for the roses sitting on the window ledge were wilting, distorted her features into near ugliness…which was a thing that would have not been believed by anyone who had ever seen her smile. _

_There was only one reason for her to be in this awful mood, for she rarely ever was, normally being the sort of person who could even be bright during tragedy. (And actually…perhaps be even more so as long as said tragedy was not a concern of hers.) And this reason was, simply, that she was not getting her way. She always got her way. Always._

_It had been years since her father permitted her to marry. But the men he offered her were so…droll. She could have anyone, yet he limited her to those who would apparently make her more modest. Her self-confidence…her BOLDNESS made him despise her. He need not say it…she already knew. But she didn't want to do things his way…she wanted to get involved with someone who made things…tragic. Ahh tragedy…one of her favorite things. Her and tragedy went SO well together. She was the Queen of Tragedy. _

_She knocked the roses over on impulse, and watched as they hit the ground. When they did they wilted entirely, turning black and shriveling into nothingness. The result of her bad mood. She sighed heavily and looked back towards the garden…still depressingly lifeless because of the long cold winter. How she despised autumn and winter. _

_As she stood at the window, brooding, she caught sight of something in the trees, making her forget her gloomy disposition. She tilted her head slightly, and squinted…as though to be sure that she was not just seeing things. Then, when her vision was confirmed, she stood up straight and slowly; a smile crept through her lips. _

_She drained the amber liquid in the glass and threw it over her shoulder, allowing it to shatter on the opposite wall. Behind her, a man dusting a finely made wooden table hurriedly got out of her way as she walked by, skirts swishing and falling delicately against her perfect legs. She leaned on the table and, despite his efforts, gave the man her full attention. _

_"What season is this, Damon?" She asked, her voice was sweet to the ears. The man did not look at her, but began to sweat slightly. His eyes fixed to a spot on the table and he wiped at it hard. _

_"I believe it's the first day of spring, my lady." He said carefully. She smiled wholly, and lit up the room, opposite to them, the roses on the ground began to bloom again._

_"Yes…" She said. "It is, isn't it? I nearly forgot" She touched his shoulder lightly. Underneath her touch he shivered. "My season." The man swallowed, as sweat began to pour down his back. _

_"Yes, madam." She wiped a finger on the table, leaving a streak, and, upon staring at it, rubbed her fingers together. This seemed to decide her next thought._

_"I think it's time for a vacation." She said, as the man cowered slightly from her, still trying desperately to avoid her crisp gaze. _

_She lifted her hand, much to the man's relief and walked back to the window. Beyond it, in the garden, the trees had begun to blossom. The woman laid her chin in her thin hands and watched them. _

'_Soon,' She thought to herself, as the dusting man hurried out of the room to cool off. 'The flowers shall bloom and the sun shall warm the earth…how lovely that will be.' _

"_This time," She said to herself in a low and frightening voice. "He'll be mine."_

XXX

"I think it's time for a vacation." The voice came from nowhere, bouncing off the sunny kitchen wall and entering the ears of the two apathetic people, both who were interested in their own activities and were rather annoyed at being pulled from them.

Grim looked up from the paper and regarded Harold with the usual look, filled with both that careful expression set aside for slow people and the aggravation of dealing with the unfairly stupid. He wondered, briefly how the oafish man had entered the kitchen without him hearing.

"I'm not babysitting your son again while you two go gallivanting around the beach in your bathing suits." He said sternly and shivered as he recalled the last time. Billy was nearing the age of eighteen and he still wasn't able to take care of himself. The last time Harold had decided it was 'Time for a vacation' he had left Billy to himself and Mandy. The house still smelled like burnt plaster and giant fish monster. (Don't ask)

Mandy, who had been sitting in the opposite chair, looked up from a book she was reading with a sickening look on her face.

"_Gallivanting_?" She questioned in a mocking tone. Grim glared at her.

"Shut up." He replied as he went back to his paper.

"No no…I meant all of us…the whole family. I got a pamphlet at work today. Apparently there's this really nice place in…" He pulled a wrinkled pamphlet out of his pocket. "Somewhere far away." He seemed to have completely forgotten to actually look where he planned on sending himself. Something else the man had said caught Grim's attention and he looked up in surprise.

"You work?" Grim asked.

Mandy shrugged, ignoring Grim.

"Hey, you guys want to take Billy away from here for a nice long vacation far away…that's fine with me." She said, all in a dull and habitual voice. Grim thought about this, and after a long moment, smiled, fantasizing about a few weeks without Billy and his screwy family around. He was about to agree when Harold laughed.

"No, I mean the WHOLE family." He said, and looked at both of them expectantly. Mandy and Grim shared a weary look and the room filled with the sort of discomfort that people shared when they were sharing a conversation with a complete idiot who has made anfool of himself and hopes that he will find out before they had to inform him about it. Harold went on smiling.

"Harold…I don't know if you recall…" Grim started. "But we…aren't a part of your family." He said, using slow words so that the stout man could keep up. Harold laughed again.

"Just take a look at this pamphlet." He said, apparently deaf to what Grim had just said. He threw the pamphlet down on the table, where it slid before coming to a halt in the middle. Grim sighed and turned it towards him.

"Spring Blossom Resort." He read, frowning at the name in distaste. "A place for you, your significant other…or even your whole family. Come let the warm arms of spring embrace you as you enjoy the Café Roman, Carnaval De Clair de lune," (He stopped here and added in a low and mocking voice; "Yeah, as if printing it in French makes it more then a stupid cafeteria and infantile carnival…") "and the beautiful beach, which stretches five miles from side to side allowing for maximum...fun." He turned the pamphlet over. "Thanks, I'll pass." He said, while tossing it towards Mandy. She raised her brow.

"I don't think I want the 'warm arms of spring' to come anywhere near me." She said as she crossed her arms.

"Oh…come on guys." Harold said, pleadingly, as though going meant the world to him. Grim gave Harold a peculiar look.

"Shouldn't you be running this past your ACTUAL family?" He asked.

"Run what past us?" Gladys said as she entered the kitchen. "You haven't made any life altering decisions that will involve spending all our money on something useless that Billy will only wind up breaking anyway did you?" She said this without taking a breath.

"No, no…nothing like that." Harold grabbed the pamphlet and handed it to Gladys, who cast a quick look over it suspiciously, before the normal barmy smile stretched across her countenance.

"A vacation? Well I think that's a wonderful idea. Of course we'll have to get a babysitter for Billy." She said, clearly pleased at the thought of getting away for a while. Grim and Mandy shared another look. Since Grim had come into their lives Gladys had been twice as crazy as she had been before. They braced themselves for an outburst.

"Nope, Billy's coming dear." Harold said, grinning. Gladys' smile became more wooden and one of her eyes twitched.

"Oh…" She said. She sounded disappointed. "Well," She said, forcing her smile to widen. (This was creepy) "Well…that's…nice." She said through her teeth. Harold decided it was a good time to make things worse.

"Grim and Mandy are coming too." He said, ignoring the protests coming from both parties. This time Gladys' smile vanished entirely.

"But dear…they aren't family." She said, casting a threatening look towards Grim.

"Haha…nonsense." Harold replied, apparently missing the undertone in Gladys' voice and the heated looks shared between her and the Grim Reaper. She had put up with him for some time…and accepted him as a part of her life now…but that didn't mean she wanted him going along on FAMILY vacations. It wasn't logical to take Death along for a relaxing family holiday.

Harold slapped Grim on the back, surprising him out of his flaming staring contest with Billy's mom.

"Why, Grim's like the son I never had…" He said, missing the look the Reaper gave him. "And Mandy…well…Mandy's like a family pet or something." Mandy's eyes widened for a moment, until her eyebrows furled back as she presented her regular scowl.

"Excuse me?" She said. She looked across the table and sent a threatening gesture in Grim's direction to stop him from smirking wickedly at her expense.

"Now I wont hear another word." He said joyfully. "We leave in two hours." He said and turned to leave the room.

"Two hours?" Grim yelled after the man.

"Yep…otherwise the free tickets are void…and since I spent the last of our emergency money on that giant cotton candy machine Billy broke, we can't afford to actually PAY for a vacation." He laughed to himself, then, cleared his throat.

"I'll go tell Billy." He said and left.

For a moment Grim, Mandy and Gladys stood in silence. Finally, Gladys turned towards Grim and Mandy and, after grinding her teeth briefly, pointed at Grim with accusation in her eyes.

"I won't have ANY of your games during this vacation, or so help me…" She jerked her finger as if it were some gesture illuminating exactly what she would do to him should he try to endanger the lives of her or her family. After, she smoothed her hair down with her right hand and smiled.

"You guys go pack. I'll make all of us sandwiches." She walked out of the room, after casting Grim one final gaze of warning. He sighed.

"I swear she just keeps getting crazier." He said while shaking his head.

"Nah…I'd say she's about the same." Mandy said as she sat back.

Grim picked up the pamphlet again and looked at it, this time, reading the inside.

"What do you know…they are free. Hmm…strange…five tickets." Mandy gave the brochure a suspicious look before she took it from him and read it herself.

After a few moments of silence she laid it back on the table and stood.

"Come on…we have packing to do." Grim blinked.

"You're actually going to go along with tis?" He asked, surprise ebbing into his voice. It was useless…she had a look of steely resolution on her face.

"This whole brochure thing seems sort of off…I don't like it…and Billy's useless without us, besides, I don't really want to be stuck here with my parents. They get really sickening during the first couple weeks from spring." She said, looking positively horrified at the thought.

"Yeah…your right…he is pretty stupid." Grimsaid.A thought entered his head.

For a moment Grim entertained himself with the idea of being left to himself. He smiled as this pleasant fancy crossed his mind. Mandy, unfortunately, had gottenrather goodat reading him. She scowled.

"If I go, you go, bonehead." She said. Her voice said that to argue would be pointless. He sighed.

"Yeah…I figured as much." He said petulantly and stood.

Mandy watched as Grim headed for Billy's basement, the chamber which held all of his important belongings. For a moment, she fell into a slight daze as she watched his silhouette against the eerie glow (From all of Grim's important belongings) of Billy's basement. Then, after she shook herself violently from her thoughts and was sure he was doing as he was told, she opened the front door and stepped out into the sun.

The path to her house was lined with blossoming trees, both pink and white. The sidewalk was sprayed with delicate petals like some gentle shower had rained them down from the skies. She could even smell the sweet scent of spring in the air…it made her sick.

She walked towards her house in an utterly foul mood. She hated spring.

XXX

Hurray, I began. Think of this as a trial chapter. For now, I will work on this story on occasion, but my other stories; at least until I finish another one, will be my first priority. I hope you enjoy it, tell me if you don't. (Or do…that's always nice, too.)

Oh btw (If you don't already know.)

**Twitterpated**: (From "The Love That Dare Not Speak It's Name" Where Billy falls for Blandy.) _adj.,_ confused by affection or infatuation. ( I just found out this was a real word.) Or, according to Grim (And this isn't a direct quote...I'm not that good with this show.) When young people fall in love in the spring, 'Durring this age girls develope...a taste for human flesh...so your life is pretty much over.' (To Billy.) Just thought I'd add this for people who either didn't catch this word in the episode, or aren't familiar with the episode itself.


	2. Arriving At The Spring Blossom Resort

Chapter Two:

Arriving At The Spring Blossom Resort

Grim set his chest in the back of Harold's car, looking at his surroundings gloomily. He could think of several things that he would prefer doing rather then going on vacation with Billy's family. Particularly if that vacation was in some prosaic place set aside for idiotic American family's to come for "romantic" getaways with such great attractions as minigolf, cliché French restaurants, and a never ending supply of souvenir shoppes employing some adolescent college student ready to pierce or tattoo anyone dumb enough to allow it in a place where the even the employees are so clearly infected by their own handiwork.

"Hey Grim…excited?" Billy said as he came out from behind the reaper carrying a large suitcase (or rather, dragging a large suitcase) with his tongue stuck out and his eyes set in determination.

"Not really." Grim said, while crossing his arms. "What have you got in there anyways, boy?" He asked as Billy finally managed to hoist the bag into the trunk.

"Everything I'll need for the most coolest vacation ever!" He said, while punching the air…and Grim by mistake.

Grim set his skull back into place, glaring at Billy in reproach.

"Oh yeah?" He said through his teeth. "And what's that, Billy?" More and more often Grim spoke his name like a curse. This was mostly because he had grown to really hate the boy…and because Billy could definitely be more terrible then anything the underworld could dish out.

"Mostly stuffed animals and string…but I gots some tacos in there too." He smiled as only a true idiot could. Grim sighed.

"What about Pjs…or a swimming suit?" Grim asked, while raising his brow.

" Nah…I'll just swim in my clothes and I sleep in the nude!" He said as he began to try to hoist himself on the top of the car.

"Remind me to bring my sleeping mask…what the hell are you doing?" Grim asked as Billy lay back on the roof and started to gather up a couple of ropes set aside for ski equipment and other things that Billy's family could not afford. (Billy's college fund had already been spent years before…and every time it began to grow again Harold would spend on something he didn't need.)

"I have to ride on the roof…dad says otherwise I distract his driving." Billy said as he buckled himself in. Grim shrugged, and felt slightly more upbeat now that he didn't have to put up with Billy in the car the whole time.

Mandy headed up the street carrying a pink suitcase. When she saw Billy she didn't seem to question why he was strapped to the roof of the car. She had known him for a long time and just accepted things now. She threw her suitcase in the back of the car and then stood gloomily glaring at Billy as he kicked the roof of the vehicle excitedly.

Shortly after Harold and Gladys emerged from the house, and headed across the lawn. Gladys was left behind considerably because she had most of the luggage. Harold, who was only carrying a camera and a small cooler, chuckled stupidly as his wife fell over and was bombarded with the bags she had to carry.

"Women...always in need of a man's strength eh Grim?" He nudged Grim, who gave him a crinkled up look of distaste.

Finally, after Gladys hoisted herself up and dragged the luggage to the back of the car, everyone, save Billy, Squeezed inside and found a seat. Harold and Gladys sat up front. Harold started the car and after backing up unnecessarily and running into the mailbox, they were off.

Shortly after they headed out Grim pulled out a large book titled Horrifying Flesh Eating Creatures And Where To Find Them and began flipping through the pages. Mandy, who was sitting next to him, sat back and crossed her arms. It was going to be a long drive, especially with Harold playing little kid's music and Glady's shouting at him every ten minutes. Grim sighed and tried to focus on his book. He couldn't imagine how much more annoying Billy could be on this drive…no…wait…yes he could.

_The Dando...a pack of black dogs led by the departed Priest of the name Dando...haunt church goers on their way to sunday school. _Grim read. He was distracted when Harold swerved drastically, sending the cooler the oafish man had set in the back window flying out towards grim. It hit him on the back of his skull. He growled to himself.

"Do you think you could be a bit more careful, Harold?" He said bitterly and opened his book again to a picture of a large creature with entirely too many eyes.

_The Beholder...a creature with great power..._he didn't get far before The car stopped suddenly, sending Grim foreward and his book sliding out of his hands. He reached for it after it hit the floor and glared up at Harold as he opened his door.

"What are you doing, dear?" Gladys asked, looking as though she were losing her patience as well.

"Gotta go, Gladys...besides...Billy fell off the roof a half a mile back and I think it's only fair that we let him catch up."

Grim shut the large volume with a sigh and set it neatly beside him, deciding that it was entirely too much work to stay focused in a car with Billy's family. He happened to glance up at Mandy when he did, who had somehow managed to fall asleep. She was leaning against the window and the sunlight was falling in and bouncing off of her blonde hair.

She looked rather peaceful…and almost beautiful in that state. One could almost forget that she was a tyrannical little brat when awake. Grim found himself fixed on her; the way the sun made her skin look so soft and the little blonde hairs strewn over her shut eyes and brow. Her hands were folded gently in her lap and her perfect feet were together, her sandals kicked off and set aside.

Grim didn't realize that he had been watching her until Harold got back into the car and slammed the door. He was shaken from his trance and quickly looked towards his window. If Mandy caught him staring at her like that she would…well, she would probably just insult him and then force him to do some embarrassing and demeaning task to entertain her. Still, he couldn't imagine what came over him.

"Mkay, I've got Billy strapped securely to the roof again, turns out his foot got stuck on one of the wires and we dragged him most of the way out of luck. We'll be at the Motel soon." He started the car back up and sped down the Highway.

XXX

The Spring Blossom Resort was nicer then expected. Usually free vacations had a catch of some sort…but this large suite seemed to be completely indoors, it had indoor plumbing, the walls in the hallway were not dripping with any unknown substances, it was carpeted and the wallpaper was entirely intact.

The lobby was almost entirely empty when Billy's family arrived along with Grim and Mandy. Gladys paused for a moment to pick the branches out of Billy's untidy hair and to spit shine his face before they approached the desk, where a weary looking man was filing his nails.

When he looked up and saw the group he gave them a snobbish look and set his file down.

"Motel 6 is down the road." He said prissily.

"We're not going there…" Harold said proudly. "We've got a free vacation here, see." He handed the man the five tickets and looked smugly at his wife.

"We don't give free vacations." He said and looked down at the passes. His gaze turned suspicious and he grabbed them off the table, turning them this way and that in front of his face. "Or…I thought we didn't…let me check with my boss." He left the counter, heading for a room behind the bar, carrying the tickets with him as he went.

"Ugh!" Grim made a sound of disgust when the man was out of sight. "Did you see the sweater that guy was wearing? It was so tacky." He crossed his arms. Mandy gave him a strange look that he chose to ignore.

After a few minutes spent waiting in silence, aside from Billy, who was playing drums with some hotel pens, the automatic doors into the motel opened and a woman stepped through. She looked confused for a moment then approached the desk carefully.

"Pardonnez-moi." She said, in thick accent. Both Mandy and Grim turned around first, Mandy regarding her with little interest. The woman smiled a little shyly and smoothed back a strand of silky black hair. "Is this ze checkin?" Grim raised his brow.

"Um…yes…it is." He responded.

"Oh, good, thank you." She said. The words almost seemed to come from her throat. Grim looked at her with interest

"Dat accent…" He started curiously, "...is it Transylvanian?" The woman smiled.

"Yes, I grew up zere." She said, while shifting the weight of her bags so that she could stretch out a thin pale hand. "I am Rhoslyn." Grim took it delicately.

"They call me Grim. It is a pleasure." He said a little nervously. Mandy, who was watching both of them closely narrowed her eyes at the woman.

"Ze pleasure iz mine." Rhoslyn said. Her eyes, a deep purple speckled with green, met his. For a moment Grim felt strange…a familiar feeling that he associated with…something, but before he could identify it it was gone as quickly as it had come. She let go of his bony hand as the desk clerk returned from the back room.

"Okay…apparently we do give free vacations and…oh there's another one. I suppose your robbing the hotel for lodge as well?" The woman stepped forward.

"No…I have a reservation." She said, smiling. The man crossed his arms.

"Oh you do, do you? Your name please?"

"Rhoslyn Amora Femi." She said. The man checked the book and then uttered a lengthened sigh.

"Alright, here you are miss Femi." He grabbed a set of keys from under the desk and handed them to her. "Have a nice stay." She paused and gave Grim a brief smirk before walking towards the elevator.

Mandy growled under her breathe.

"Pardonnez-moi isn't Transylvanian." She said broodingly. Grim shrugged, a light smile touching his skull.

"Okay…apparently these tickets are for the Spring Blossom VIP Suite…which happens to be empty…I don't mind telling you that I argued this matter ("Yeah…bet you did." Grim said under his breathe) with my boss, but since it's unoccupied he said to go ahead and let you have it." He pulled out a few keys and handed them over to Harold who was smiling stupidly.

"Enjoy your stay." The desk clerk said crossly.

"Come on guys, let's go see our suite!" Harold said enthusiastically. "I'll race you, Billy."

"Okay Papa!" Billy said as he ran after his father. Gladys shouted after them, but to no avail. She sighed and headed towards the elevator.

Mandy stopped before reaching the elevator and looked over her shoulder at the check in desk where the man had gotten back to his nail care.

"Five tickets for a resort that should be crowded with people…but isn't and we even got the suite…what's wrong with this picture?" Grim, who was struggling with both of their luggage beside her shrugged in annoyance.

"Your too suspicious, Mandy. Good things happen to stupid people all the time…that's one of the main things that's wrong with this world…do you think you could get at least _one_ of your bags?"

"My arms are tired." Mandy said lazily as she pushed the up button on the elevator. The doors opened. Grim grumbled to himself as he stepped through the doors, balancing the weight of the bags by sticking one in his mouth. He groaned inwardly when he saw the floor number on one of the room keys Harold gave him before he went racing off with his son.

After nine floors the elevator stopped and opened. Mandy walked out with Grim who was struggling to keep up with her. When they finally reached the room, Grim edged the key towards Mandy, who took it and opened the door.

Gladys was already inside unpacking. She saw Grim and Mandy and rolled her eyes.

"Harold and Billy must be lost. I'd better find them before they destroy something." She paused in the doorway and gave Grim an uncompromising look as he dropped both his and Mandy's things at the foot of one of the beds.

"This room belongs to us…the family. There's an attached family room with a fold out couch…you two can stay there. You can sleep on the floor Grim." She left, slamming the door as she went. Grim sighed.

"Dat woman is really beginning to aggravate me." Mandy grabbed her stuff and moved into the next room.

"Stop whining…besides, do you really want to be stuck in the same room with Billy this whole time?" Grim picked up his trunk, looking considerably brighter.

"Hey…you've got a point."

XXX

Miss Femi laid a silky dress out on her bed. It was black, flowing and morbid. She smoothed out a few places and straitened out the silk, then, with a quick motion ripped off half of the long skirt. There…now it was a little black dress.

Next she went to the large mirror on the vanity table and looked at herself. She reached for the makeup she brought and began opening lipstick tubes. Finally, she found a dark purplish color and examined it.

"Yuck…" She said, and put it on. "Well, no one said it was easy? C'est la vie." She set the tube down and picked up the dress, slipping it on in a flowing motion. Finally, she stood back in the mirror and grinned with perfect white teeth.

"Parfait." She said, her crystal eyes gleaming.

XXX

Ugh. I feel terrible today…but at least I have a day off from work and had time to finish this. Hopefully you liked it. I have other things I need to update, so it might be a little while.

Thanks for your reviews!


	3. The Barren Seaside

Chapter Three:

The Barren Seaside

Grim was sitting in one of the hotel chairs, which was leaning against the wall by a window above a noisy air conditioner. (No matter how nice the resort is…there always seems to be a noisy air conditioner) His book lay open in front of him. Beside him on the table was a cup of weak hotel coffee. Right now it was quiet. This was because it was early in the morning and Billy and his family were still asleep.

Gladys had tracked both Billy and Harold down by the arcade the night before. They had gotten lost and apparently had forgotten why they were there. After wasting twenty bucks of quarters on a Wonder grab machine Gladys had pulled them back up to the room. They were both now sound asleep and crowded by fluffy stuffed animals.

Grim lost his place in his book when an empty bucket was dropped in his lap. He looked up in aggravation at Mandy, who must've recently awakened.

"We need ice, bonehead. Get moving" Grim grumbled to himself, but knew better then to argue. He carefully placed a bookmark in between the pages he was currently on and stood.

"Don't know why you can't get it yourself you lazy brat." He grumbled as he headed towards the door.

The hallway was oddly silent. Normally it would be filled with the chatter of various families. Grim didn't think much about it as he headed towards the ice machine. On either side, the vending machines hummed with electricity. Grim shoved the bucket in the machine and pressed the button. The machine grinded away and the bucket began to fill.

"It vould appear that ve may run into each other a lot over the next few days, Grim…vasn't it?" Grim turned, slightly startled. Behind him, Rhoslyn was standing with her arms crossed and a slight smile on her face. Apparently the "morning look" didn't apply to her. Her black hair fell perfectly over her shoulders. She wore a slip that looked more like an evening dress and was carrying a bucket of her own.

"Do you mind?" She asked and extended it. Grim shrugged, suddenly tongue-tied. He took the bucket and shoved it in the machine along with his own.

"I noticed…ze people you vere vith yesterday. Your family?" She asked. Grim blinked and then shook himself out of his reverie.

"Uh...no…no definitely not! Those are just my…" Grim searched for the word that best described Billy and Mandy.

"Friends?" Rhoslyn asked, and then smiled.

"Well…sorta." Grim said and made a face.

"I see." She said and looked off for a bit. "I believe ze buckets are full."

"What? Oh…" Grim turned and cursed as he wrenched both buckets out of an avalanche of ice cubes. Several cubes fell to the floor and shattered. Rhoslyn looked amused as he handed her her bucket, smiling with embarrassment.

"Thank you." She said and took it from him. She started to head back to her room and then turned.

"Hopefully ve vill run into each other again soon." She said.

"Uh…yeah…" Grim responded nervously.

She smiled and continued down the hall.

XXX

When he got back to the hotel room he was in a good mood…for a little while anyway, until he saw that Billy was up. He had opened the door between their room and Grim and Mandy's and was currently jumping on the bed in his boxer shorts and yelling 'beach' over and over. His parents, who had learned to ignore him ages ago were sitting and drinking coffee at a small table by a window with a lovely view of the empty parking lot.

Mandy, however, looked as if she was about two seconds away from beating the crud out of him.

"Here's your ice your majesty." He said bitterly. Mandy took it from him, ignoring his snide remark and headed towards a pink cooler in the corner of the room. Her own stash of provisions she brought along for the trip.

Grim picked his book back up off the table and was about to sit when Mandy took it out of his hands and tossed it onto the bed.

"You can read later, Grim. Right now we're going to take Billy to the beach…so he'll shut up." Billy shouted and jumped off the bed. He landed on his face a few feet away from Grim.

"But I don't want to go to da beach! You take him!" He growled, as he watched Billy pick himself off the ground. "Or better yet…let him go himself…he's a big boy now…"

"No way Grim. I can't be trusted. I'd get lost…or drown…or I'd stick seashells up my nose. Come on, it'll be fun!" Billy said as he grabbed Grim's bony arm and began pulling him towards the door. "We can build a sand castle with little sand people and dungeons and a flag on top…or better yet, we can bury you up to your neck and wait until the tide comes in!" Grim protested as Billy pulled him out the door. Mandy followed them with a bored look on her face. She picked up her cooler on the way out.

XXX

"Ugh! I hate da beach." Grim said as the three of them walked out onto the sand. It was still early in the morning so the sand was cool not yet having the chance to heat up and start burning yet. "The water will probably be freezing too." Grim said, while crossing his arms.

"Stop complaining, Grim." Mandy said as she searched Billy's fanny pack (Because _she _certainly wouldn't wear one) for sun block. "Yuck!" Mandy pulled her hand out. She was holding a melted candy bar. "Billy this thing is full of melted chocolate and string…where the hell is the sun block I told you to bring?"

Billy, who was still in his boxer shorts, (No bathing suit…remember) ran away laughing as he caught site of a stand renting out boogie boards. Mandy shook the melted chocolate off of her hand and turned to Grim.

"All right bonehead, go get me some sun block. Here's ten bucks, there's a beach side store over there." Mandy shoved the money in Grim's hand and unfolded her beach towel.

Grim sighed and headed towards the shop as Mandy put a pair of sunglasses on and opened her cooler.

XXX

A tiny bell rang over the door as Grim headed into the air-conditioned shop, grumbling to himself. He went down a couple aisles, until he found the sun block, sitting atop a shelf next to jelly fish ointment and tanning spray. He selected the cheapest bottle and headed towards the counter. It was empty.

Grim set the sun block on top of the surface in front of the register and looked around curiously.

"Hello, is anybody working here?" He put his hands on the counter and leaned forward, looking left and right. To the right was a gray employees only door. "Hey, I don't have all day you know!" he yelled, his bony hand cupped over his mouth. He waited a minute, but no one replied. "Strange. Oh well…the brat'll just have to do without." He turned to head back to the door out to the beach.

"Can I help you?" Grim let out a cry of surprise and turned to see a thin man wearing an odd little smile, standing behind the counter. He didn't look like any beach merchant that Grim had ever seen before. He was wearing a long back suit, clearly velvet, with red lining. His hair was blond and pulled back into a tight ponytail.

"Uh…yeah…sure. I just wanted to buy this sun block." The man, his expression not changing, looked down at the sun block.

"Hmm…I see." He said, looking up again. "Well, take it then. I wont keep you." He had worrying blue eyes and was kind of giving Grim the creeps.

"Uh…don't I have to pay for it, man?"

The blond man took the sun block and held it out to Grim.

"It's just sun block, Mr. Reaper. It's on the house." Grim, looking uneasy, took the sun block and backed slowly towards the door. The man watched him, that strange smile never fading.

When he was out of the shop he cast it a suspicious look.

"Well…that was weird." He said to himself. "Maybe Mandy's right…maybe there is something odd going on around here." He headed back towards the beach where Billy and Mandy had a large portion of it pretty much to themselves.

"Here's your sun block." Grim said. Mandy, who was drinking a chilled coffee, took it.

"Where's my change?" Grim handed her her ten-dollar bill. Mandy raised her brow. "What'd you do, steal it?"

"No…it was free. Hey…this is odd, isn't it? It's almost ten o' clock and da whole beach is empty. There are at least ten beach side resorts here…you'd tink there'd be loads of people."

Mandy took off her sunglasses and looked around. The beach _was_ empty. There were a few people, but even they were almost a half a mile away.

"Hmm…on the one hand, no people means a much more pleasant day at the beach." Mandy said, apparently thinking. "Still, We should check it out. Come on Billy." She dragged Billy away from the empty stand where boogie boards were rocking slowly in the gently sea breeze. "Let's check with the guy at the store."

Grim shook his head.

"He seemed a bit odd, if you ask me. I think we should check with the guy at the front desk. He was snobby…but fairly normal as far as expensive resort employees go."

"We're doing it my way." Mandy said, as she pulled Billy, by his collar, in the direction of the Beach side shop. "We'll check the shop guy first, then the desk clerk." Grim frowned, but knew better then to argue.

"Fine…" He said bitterly and followed her.

XXX

The shop was empty again. Grim crossed his arms and watched as Mandy went up to the desk and looked around.

"Hey! What kind of service is this?" Mandy yelled mildly. When there was no answer she turned towards Grim. "What exactly was so strange about this shop keeper?" Grim uncrossed his arms.

"Oh, so now you want to know. You could have listened to me before…" Mandy interrupted him.

"For once in your afterlife could you just answer the damn question without complaining?" She said in her typical monotone voice. Her eyes were burning with caution. Grim growled reproachfully, but opened his mouth to answer her question, he paused, however when the bell over the shop door rang again. All three of them turned towards the noise.

"Perfect." Mandy said sarcastically as Rhoslyn wandered into the store looking confused. She spotted Grim, Mandy and Billy and smiled a little.

"Good morning." She said in thick Transylvanian. "Is anybody vorking here today?"

"Apparently not." Mandy said. She grabbed Grim by the wrist and Billy by the collar and headed towards the door. "Come on, we'll come back later." Rhoslyn watched as they passed her. She smiled at Grim who returned her smile as they left the shop.

"Hey Mandy!" Grim said as he was dragged back onto the beach. "Hold on a minute!" Mandy halted and gave him an impatient look.

"What?" She asked heavily.

"Why don't we ask Rhoslyn if she's seen anything? She is after all the only other guest we've seen at the hotel." Mandy's frown deepened.

"And you don't think that's a bit odd?" Both of them turned as Rhoslyn came out of the store. Grim shrugged and turned towards her. Mandy watched the woman carefully. (Well…mostly she glared at her…but she was also watching in case the woman should reveal herself as some loathsome creature in disguise as an extraordinarily beautiful woman)

"Hey Rhoslyn." Grim said nervously. "You haven't noticed anything odd about this place have you? It's so empty. Is there like…something going on this weekend?" Rhoslyn seemed to give this careful consideration. (Mandy wondered if maybe she was some kind of idiot…or if careful thought caused her pain)

"Hmm…it's the first veek of spring. You'd think it vould be full…vouldn't you?" She looked around the beach.

"It is rather empty. I thought it was a bit odd this morning when I voke up and had the continental breakvast all to myself…" She brightened up a little. "If you vant to ask someone, there's a nearby bar…it was crowded this morning. Maybe zey vould know something."

Mandy stepped forward, thinking that any woman who visited a bar in the morning must be some kind of drunk.

"Actually, we were just going to ask the man at the front desk. Come on Grim." She pulled him a few steps in the direction of the hotel.

"He isn't zere." Rhoslyn said, causing her to halt. "I checked zis morning because no one answered my call for room service." Grim pulled away from Mandy. Mandy, however raised her brow.

"Well then, looks like we have no choice. Bar it is." Mandy glared.

"Wait a minute. You just said you went down to the continental breakfast. You called for room service too?" Mandy thought she saw Rhoslyn pause for a fraction of a second, but she might've been imagining it.

"I called down after ze breakvast, to see if zey had coffee. The breakvast did not have it…and I am terrible in the morning vithout my coffee." Mandy watched her for a moment suspiciously, then the expression dropped.

"Fine. Where is this bar?" The woman drew in a sharp breath through her teeth and shook her head sympathetically.

"Only problem is, no vone under ze age ove twenty vone is allowed in." Mandy narrowed her eyes.

"It's all right Mandy." Grim said pleasantly. "I'll go check out the bar and meet you back at the hotel room." Mandy's jaw tightened as she watched the woman slip her arm through Grim's companionably.

"I'll show you vere it is." She said sweetly. For a moment Mandy and Grim met each other's gaze. Mandy pointed to her watch.

"You have thirty minutes Grim." She said sulkily. Grim turned away from her, allowing himself to be led towards the bar. Before Mandy turned back towards Billy, Rhoslyn looked back at them.

"Adieu." She said, and wiggled her fingers. Mandy tightened her fist.

"Come on Billy. We're going to do some investigations of our own." Billy, who was eating sand, got up and followed her as she headed towards the hotel.

XXX

Sorry for the delay. I've been busy with stuff and have had some terrible writers block. I hope this chapter is all right. I'll try to update soon…especially since now I at least know what's going to happen in the next chapter.

Nako Chan: Thank you for your fabulous review. Her name means Lovely Rose, Love, Love. I wasn't sure if anyone would catch that or not. I'm really glad you like the story so far, especially since yours is so wonderful and your such a fabulous writer.

Hell's Agent: ) Thank you, glad you like it so far.

FurubaFmaNarutoHngFan: Sorry this chapter took so long. I'll try to be much quicker about future installments.

You're all wonderful! Thank you for the reviews.


	4. Grim's Late

Chapter Four:

Grim's Late

"So wait…where are you staying again?"

"The Spring Blossom Resort." Mandy said bitterly to the man with the long red hair and the stupid expression. She had answered this same question three times now. Around her were various souvenirs, typical in design. Billy was busy playing with a wooden surfer man who he was apparently taking through a sea of coffee cups and an obese woman in a Hawaiian shirt. (The woman had hit him twice already)

"Is that on Fourth Street?" The boy said while adjusting his sunglasses.

"It's across the street, you idiot." Mandy said, losing her patience. The boy leaned to the side to look out the glass door.

"Oh…that place."

Mandy rolled her eyes.

"You work here…right across the street…tell me what you do know."

He stared at her for a moment.

"Well…you're the one staying there…why're you asking me? I just work this shop while Juggo is out of town." Mandy sighed.

"But I don't know anything about it." She said through her teeth. "You've been around…maybe you've noticed something unusual about it?" The guy seemed to think for a moment, nodding to himself. Mandy had a feeling that there was nothing really going on behind his contemplative façade. After a few moments, when it appeared as though he had shut down entirely she was just about to grab Billy and walk out

"I do know something. My bro tried to stay there once for spring break…but they wouldn't let him in because they said he was a…let's see 'stone faced junkie' Then they made him leave and never come back because he started to make a scene" Mandy gritted her teeth and turned.

"Never mind." She was beginning to suspect that this person was even dumber then Billy…no…maybe almost as dumb anyways.

"Oh yeah…also I know it's usually closed around this time…during the spring for about a week…the big boss man comes in to you know…check that things are cool and stuff." Mandy's face went bank.

"Well, I'm staying there now." She said angrily. "So that doesn't really help me does it?" The red headed kid looked confused for a second.

"No…I guess not…do you want a piercing today…or a tattoo? I can draw a skull…well…it's kind of like a frog thing…but…"

"Come on Billy." Mandy said, interrupting him. "Let's find someone else to talk to." She grabbed the wooden surfer from Billy's always-sticky hand and threw it across the room.

When they were out of the shop Mandy sighed.

"Well, that's the last shop on this side of town…and so far all we've managed to acquire is a couple of cheap souvenirs and a lot of useless information." She looked at her watch. "Almost four o' clock. I wonder if Grim found anything. He should be back in the hotel room by now. Come on Billy." Billy followed her back to the hotel obediently, playing with a wooden toy and some string on the way

XXX

"What do you mean you haven't seen him for hours?" Mandy said, the rage clearly evident in her face. Gladys and Harold looked slightly downcast now that they didn't have the hotel room to themselves anymore.

"Well, you kids went down to the beach…we haven't seen him since." Gladys said. It was obvious she wasn't too dejected about this occurrence.

Mandy tightened her fists and plodded through the room. Once she got to her and Grim's hotel room she kicked randomly at something and sat down heavily in the chair by the window. She gazed at her watch.

"I said a half an hour." She said through her teeth.

A moment after, Billy appeared in the doorway looking cautious. He was stupid…but even he knew when to keep his distance.

"Hey Mandy, why don't we just go and find Grim." He said slowly.

"No Billy." Mandy said, as she glared at a wall. "I'm not going to waste my energy searching for that bag of bones. We'll wait till he gets back…and then he'll pay." She brought her fist down on the side of the chair. If it hurt her, it didn't show.

Billy stood a little longer, and then became distracted when he saw a tiny spider crawling up the wall.

After Billy's screams of terror had ceased, and the spider was small smear on the wall, Mandy was left to her thoughts. (Billy had run out of the room screaming in horror and rage about how he would kill any and all spiders that threatened to ruin his vacation) She sat back against the chair and looked out the window, a frown etched deeply on her face.

To pass time, she picked up Grim's book off of the end table and put her thumb in the page that he had marked. The pages folded over easily to reveal a picture of a serpent with a human head. A Naga. She started to read.

After a couple hours she began to fall asleep. In that time she almost finished the book. Grim's bookmark had fallen out (When she had accidentally dropped it and kicked it under the bed) so he had lost his place. It was a very small evil…but Mandy took pleasure in it. The last thing she read before she fell asleep was about a creature that apparently seduced young men to devour them. She wondered, lightly…and without any real conviction (Only out of bitter jealousy…but this was a thing she was not going to admit, even to herself) if Rhoslyn was such a creature. As she drifted into slumber she amused herself with the image of the beautiful woman turning slowly into a terrible creature and trying to devour Grim.

_---OMG IT'S A DREAM SEQUENCE---_

_Mandy looked around her in disgust (And some awe…or at least that was what the dream would have liked her to believe) She was in a very large room. The floor, which was gold and red, was so clean that it was like a slightly fogged mirror. It reflected everything that was on it and which stood above it. From the ceiling, great diamond chandeliers hung. They glittered and sent a reflection of a thousand dancing stars across the room. In the back, great windows rose from the floor, revealing a large full moon and a balcony. The room was filled with people whose faces were concealed by more shadows then there should have been in the room. _

_Mandy took a few steps forward, slack jawed. She NEVER had dreams like this. Her dreams were evil and deliciously cruel. This was ridiculous…it was like some kind of world out of the mind of some love starved, drama queen, beauty contestant. _

_It got worse. She was wearing a dress. A big pink flowing dress. And oh god…it swished when she moved. _

_She raised her hand to slap herself as hard as she could in the face, but before she could her hand was detained in the grip of a gloved hand. She looked to her right._

"_Grim?" He was wearing a sleek pinstripe suit. Clutched in his jaw was a crimson rose. Mandy tried to pull her hand away, but was unable to find the energy. _

_Grim removed the rose easily and in one elegant movement pulled her towards him and into a position to waltz. For a moment Mandy was awestruck. Then, as Grim extended the rose out to her, she snapped out of it and regained her composure. She attempted to pull away from him once again. This time, she succeeded. _

"_What the hell do you think your doing?" She asked, while taking a few steps back. _

"_What you want me to." Grim said as he attempted to lessen the space between them. "I always do what you want me to. You should know that by now." He reached out to take her hand again and she pulled away. _

"_Cut it out, Grim! I never said I wanted this!" She tightened her fingers into a fist and extended it threateningly. Grim looked slightly downcast. _

"_Well…it is _your_ dream, Mandy." He crossed his arms. _

"_Maybe so but…" But what? He was right. It was her dream. It wasn't as though he were actually there. Perhaps this was a nightmare…er…no…those were okay…this would be one of those pleasant dreams she had heard so much about. _

"_Damn…I was hoping I could go through my life without experiencing one of them." _

"_So, why fight it?" Grim said, with a smile. He extended the rose. Mandy's hand reacted against her will and dangled in the air an inch from his. Around her, the party guests had paused in their affairs to watch her. They were faceless, glittery, horrible apparitions. Mandy pulled her hand away. _

"_No…this isn't supposed to happen. I don't have pleasant dreams…I don't partake in romance…I refuse to be a part of this." She grabbed up her skirts as though she were about to flee gracefully, and then, remembering herself, ripped the soft glittery material in one quick motion. She threw it down on the ground. The dress wouldn't swish anymore. She kicked off the shoes and headed quickly for the door. _

"_Mandy!" Grim called after her. She ignored him. _

_Like poison, the guest's trickled slowing into the center of the room and became a barrier in between Mandy and the large double doors at the end of the Grand Hall. Then glided like ghosts. Mandy stopped in front of a woman in red with no face. _

"_Stay lady, the dance should begin soon." Behind her, Grim had eliminated the distance between them in seconds. He placed a bony hand on her shoulder. Mandy reacted and without much thought, plunged forward into the crowd. _

"_Out of my way!" She said angrily. As she pushed through them, they crumpled like tissue paper, falling to the ground at the slightest touch._

_Finally, she reached the end of the hall and the doors. She opened them and walked out into the night. The moon showed high above, swollen in this appalling dream. _

_She took a few steps and something red caught her eye. It was a rose, far too big and beautiful to be real. Mandy turned to look at it. Beyond it, there were hundreds of them, blooming, swelling…bleeding. All of them were bleeding. In the moonlight, the blood glistened. Instead of horror, Mandy felt relief. This was more like it. She could feel at ease with a nightmare. _

_Someone was trying to get inside the hotel room without being heard…_

XXX 

They weren't doing a very good job. Mandy awoke when Grim entered quietly. He saw her, watching him, and froze with terror. For a moment Mandy didn't do anything, still confused from her dream. Then, slowly, she came back to herself and scowled at him. At that point the thought of leaving again did cross Grim's mind. Instead, he shut the door behind him and waited for things to go badly.

Mandy looked sideways at the clock, then returned her gaze to Grim, who would have been sweating, had he the glands to sweat with.

"It's eleven o' clock Grim." Mandy said through her teeth. "I said thirty minutes. Where the hell have you been?"

"Well…" Grim said, while moving his bony hand to the back of his skull in a typically masculine gesture associated with embarrassment or discomfort. "Me and Rhoslyn went to da bar but it was pretty empty aside from this one guy who was too drunk to talk to us, so we decided to check a couple of other places…I guess I lost track of time."

"You lost track of almost fourteen hours? Somehow I really doubt that." Her voice was calm, but laced with venom. She stood and approached him. Grim felt his bones trying to scuttle away from her despite his best effort to stand his ground. She was an inch away from him and he could see her furious eyes under the strands of her blonde hair daring him to stand up to her. He swallowed.

"Well?" She said sternly.

"Well what?" Grim replied, not able to conceal the unease in his voice.

"Did you find out anything? You had fourteen hours…you must have gathered loads of information." He knew that she already knew what he was going to say…she just wanted to torture him into admitting it. He hadn't found out a single thing all day.

"Well…actually…um…we…I…" He swallowed again. She was watching him carefully, with a steady gaze. Her eyes were burning with fury. It was hard to speak, let alone be brave under that gaze.

"I see." She said coldly. "I'm tired. I'm going to sleep. We'll discuss your punishment in the morning."

She turned away from him…and it was as if he unfroze. He had had such a nice day…no one yelling at him or making him do things he didn't want to. No one drooling on him or using his bones for a Frisbee or fishing rod or any other number of things they'd used his bones for in the past. He hadn't been degraded or stripped of worth, or forced to forget his pride to do some menial task that those wretched brats wouldn't do for themselves.

Grim suddenly felt hot anger rising in him. He was Death dammit. He had been alive for thousands of years and here Mandy was, barely a woman and treating him like he was a child…or a servant. It wasn't as though he had done anything wrong, either. He had spent the day with a rather nice…and admittedly good-looking woman. He had that right. He opened his mouth to say so but was pelted with a pillow.

"There, go sleep in the corner or something." Mandy said as she pulled the blankets over her shoulders. Grim sighed and let the pillow fall to the ground. After a few minutes, during which Grim just stood, brooding, until he heard Mandy snoring. He turned, nearly tripped over the pillow, and spent a long moment looking at the door, contemplating the idea of stealing away and…but he wouldn't…he couldn't. He didn't know why he couldn't. Surely he could just leave…maybe for the night, hell, maybe forever. Certainly he had thought about it before.

Instead, he kicked the pillow towards the chair and sat down stonily. He tried to position the pillow between his skull and the hotel wall so that he might find a comfortable position…but eventually gave up and sat back miserably.

_So zey are friends ove yours?" _Rhoslyn's voice entered his consciousness. He recalled a conversation from earlier in the evening, at sunset actually. They had been on the beach. It was…admittedly a lousy place to try and find information, but by that time they weren't really looking. Grim had been aware that what they were doing could have been considered a date…and it had made him a bit uncomfortable.

"_Well…kinda…" he answered. The sunset was uncommonly perfect and the sea glistened beneath it. At one point she had taken his arm and he had found himself under the impression that he was blushing despite the fact that he had no skin or blood to do so. _

"_Ze blonde one is very…demanding…she is a friend of yours?" _

"_For lack of a better word." Grim had said, brought back to reality a bit when she mentioned Mandy. _

"_She does not treat you like a friend." Rhoslyn said quietly. _

"_No…not really." Grim had replied and he was surprised at the tone of his voice. It wasn't scornful or cynical, but honest and slightly hurt. He cleared his throat, suspecting that he was rather tired. The sun really was taking a long time to set. _

"_So vy do you hang out vith zem?" _

"_It's a long and complicated story." Grim said…well grimly. _

"_Perhaps it is time you find better friends." Grim opened his mouth to speak, but was unable to when she laid her head lightly against his shoulder. They had walked on in silence then as the sun finally vanished over the horizon. _

_XXX_

Sorry…god…do I even have to say it? It's taken too long. I'll try to do better next time but I'm swamped with college work and regular work and other stuff…and blech.

In any case, I hope you all like this chapter and I appreciate your reviews. (Especially you people who review despite my lack of existence most of the time.) I'll update as soon as I can. NEXT time, I'll try to throw a little more GrimXMandy in it…although…I'd rather not over do it just yet…these things take time. :) Love you all:)


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